The present disclosure generally relates to the recovery of computer system and, in particular, to storing and updating a locally stored recovery image.
Computing devices (e.g., desktop computers, laptops, netbooks, tablets, smart phones, mobile devices, servers, etc.) generally operate using a combination of firmware and software that is configured to execute on the hardware of a given computing device. A given set of firmware and software (e.g., the operating system) that is used to operate a computing device may be referred to as an operating image for the computing device.
Various situations may occur where it is desired to replace or repair a current operating image of a computing device. For example, a user may wish to update the computing device's operating image to the most recent version or the computing device's operating image may become corrupted. Such corruption may be the result of a malicious act. Such malicious acts include modification of a computing device's image to install malicious software or “malware” (e.g., viruses, spyware, password sniffers, etc.). Corruption of an operating image may also occur as a result of other causes. For example, an operating image could become corrupted as a result of an update to the image (e.g., to improve functionality or to enhance security of the computing device) being interrupted due to loss of network connectivity, a power failure, or a number of other factors. In these instances, it is desirable that the corrupted operating image be replaced or repaired with an image that is free of corruption.
A recovery image may be a set of firmware and software that can be used to replace or repair a computing device's operating image. However, restoring an operating image using a recovery image may be a complex, if not a difficult process, and the recovery image itself may also be susceptible to data corruption. Furthermore, an outdated recovery image may contain security vulnerabilities that may be exploited before an update can occur. As a result, maintaining an updated recovery image may be desirable.